Fifth Third investment guru gives thumbs up to Jacksonville's natural gas development

Drew Dixon

Thursday

Jan 30, 2014 at 4:29 PM

A top investment analyst speaking in Jacksonville Thursday said the market is bullish on natural gas and Jacksonville is positioning itself to capitalize on the emerging commodity.

Jeff Korzenik, chief investment strategist for Fifth Third Bank, was the keynote speaker at a luncheon at the River Club downtown with Fifth Third employees and clients. He said with the Great Recession over, economically, "Florida is on the upswing."

One of the key economic opportunities for a more robust economy is investment in natural gas development, Korzenik said. In addition, municipalities cultivating efforts to engender natural gas development will be ahead of the economic curve.

"We're now, only now, starting to come to the point in the cycle where [natural gas] permits are being granted, pipelines are being dug, refineries are being built and that's being translated into growth and real economic activity," said Korzenik, who is based in Chicago.

His assessment of the bullish market comes as the approach to enhancing natural gas development is on the upswing in Jacksonville.

ROLE FOR JAXPORT

At a meeting of the North Florida Logistics Advisory Group in October, JaxPort officials and local business leaders stressed the importance of making the port a major player in a natural-gas industry that is soaring in the United States.

In October, Clean Energy Fuels announced it will build a natural-gas processing and fueling terminal in North Jacksonville.

And some of the port's major tenants are diving into the natural-gas industry.

Sea Star Line has ordered two LNG-powered cargo container ships. Those vessels are under construction and are expected to be delivered in 2015.

In May, Jacksonville-based Crowley Maritime Corp. purchased Carib Energy, which has a U.S. Department of Energy license for the export of liquefied natural gas.

Korzenik said given the burgeoning industry, Jacksonville is well positioned.

"On a national perspective, first, we think natural gas can be truly transformative for the economy," Korzenik said. "For a port like Jacksonville, we think it's quite important.

"I think the Jacksonville story of a more diverse economy than much of the rest of the state, that's a strength in attaching the city to the heart of the energy industry and that is certainly a big positive," Korzenik said.

3 ELEMENTS

He said there are three elements to the boom in natural gas: The United States has pioneered much of the technology for natural gas extraction, this country has exceptionally large reserves and America has a legal approach to mineral rights that supports exploration and production.

Those elements alone make private investment in natural gas a winner, Korzenik said. But the municipal forays into natural gas have more profound reaches.

"I would say that any city which has the infrastructure of a Jacksonville is well served by participating in what's one of the fastest-growing parts of the U.S. economy," Korzenik said.

Fifth Third Jacksonville President Brian Evans said Jacksonville's municipal pursuit of natural gas development appears to be heading in a solid direction.

"It feels like it's the right decision," Evans said. "I think it's a port town that's heavily invested in logistics, transportation and manufacturing, and it's clearly an opportunity for the city."

Drew Dixon: (904) 359-4098

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